You know when you lose your wallet, house keys and sunglasses, but you don’t lose perspective on opening the garage door because you deposited 50 euros? A team of scientists from the University of Colorado Boulder and University College London wants to do something similar with satellite operators, though their proposal isn’t about losing anything, but about deorbiting satellites so they don’t become space junk. If they do, they will be refunded the $200,000 bond with interest. If not, the money goes into a general fund to finance the removal of such waste
A deposit before launch. According to this recommendation, scientists have detailed in an article Nature communicationSatellite operators have to submit this before launching them. The standard can be invoked nationally without the need for international agreements requiring the approval of many parties. As we have seen, if they manage to properly deorbit their satellites once they are no longer operational, the money is returned with interest. If not, it accumulates to fund space junk cleanup.
Kessler syndrome. Kessler syndrome describes a tipping point in the accumulation of space debris after which collisions produce enough fragments to trigger more collisions. This would be a very dangerous domino effect, which could damage satellites and ships or even affect residential facilities, such as the International Space Station. This initiative aims to prevent this problem from occurring, as there will be no turning back.
Inspiration in the United States. Over the years, the United States has imposed similar bonds on oil companies to guarantee the dismantling of old facilities. It served as inspiration for the authors of the study on space debris. However, the Trump administration announced in 2025 that it would review the extension of these guarantees agreed with Biden, so it may be reluctant to consider a similar proposal for satellites. The authors of the study said that the United States is the country that sends the most satellites, with SpaceX clearly in the lead, so if its government refuses to join the plan, a large parcel of space junk will be exposed.
there is hope. Even if most countries reject or companies do not comply with the plan and lose their deposits, the pace of space debris disposal currently pursued will improve. In fact, even if only 20% of global launches were covered, abandoned satellites would decrease by 18%. This is a quite relevant percentage if we want to prevent Kessler syndrome.
At this point it’s just an idea being launched into a scientific study, but it’s still an interesting proposition. There are more plans to remove space debris from Earth orbit, but most are very expensive. If the countries that release this waste were responsible for paying for it, the situation would be more balanced.
Cover image Representation of Kessler syndrome. Credit: ESA
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